June 23, 2009

Blueberry Vanilla Bean Frosting

Directions:
Beat the egg whites and salt to soft peaks using an electric mixer. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring sugar, vanilla bean blueberries and water to a boil, stirring occasionally, mashing the berries a bit with the back of your spoon. Continue to boil until it reaches soft ball stage (when a drop of the syrup forms a soft ball when dropped in cool water) while continuing to stir occasionally.

Whisk the mixture through a fine sieve into a heat safe measuring cup and discard the blueberries. Keep the mixer running (to be safe use a stand mixer or a friend to complete this next step) and pour a continuous stream of molten syrup into the egg whites. Continue to beat for about 5 minutes or until the frosting is fluffy, glossy and cool. Frost cooled cupcakes or cake.

My thoughts:

The best word to describe this frosting is ethereal. It has an incredibly light and smooth texture and is infused with blueberries and vanilla. So good and perfect for summer.

Wow, what perfect timing! I've been trying to figure out the perfect frosting for a cake that I want to make, and blueberries appear to be at their peak in my region, so ... thank you for the serendipity! That pastel purple in the photo really is attractive. :-)

this looks so pretty, so if the taste is good an extra plus! I am thinking of doing this with raspberries just because they are peaking here and soo sweet....if I do I will link back to you! thanks for the great recipe!

Has anyone ever had any problems with this frosting having a sort of "sour" aftertaste? I've attempted a beaten frosting with just vanilla to flavor it and it turned out beautifully, but there was an almost metallic tinge to it. I checked my saucepan and it's non-reactive so that can't be it...

Anon-I've made this type of icing dozens of times and have never encountered any sort of aftertaste. Could it be the utensils you are using? The mixing bowl? Is everything very clean? There is nothing in beaten icing that should have any aftertaste at all, it is just sugar, water, egg whites.